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Monday, January 24, 2011

What Does Not Irritate You To Death.....

What does not irritate you to death makes you stronger. My motto for the past weekend. :D A little background, we live in a drafty, old, uninsulated farmhouse. Possibly romantic in the abstract, but frustrating in the concrete. For the second time this winter the pipes froze in the barn leaving us waterless in the house, it still isn't back on. Cooking is well nigh impossible with no water, bathing doesn't happen and 10 people using a toilet that can't flush....well, just imagine the possibilities! We melted snow to wash hands and used that water to flush the toilet when it became a matter of public safety. Mr. G bought a couple of jugs of water to brush teeth with and we ate Domino's for lunch and soup and sandwiches for supper since we could do that without water. Still, all in all, it could be a lot worse. We had a big pile of beautiful, fragrant cherry firewood to burn, food and relatively warm beds to cuddle into. All of the important things. Mr. G hopes the water will be working soon (he's been messing with it all day) because he really needs a shower before he heads to work. :-) We spent the evening last night listening to Mr. G read The Hobbit to us, FYI Asa shares Bilbo and Frodo's birthday so how cool is that?

Then the Men cleaned their guns and oiled their boots, Asa is obsessed with Aleks and wanted to "help" with the gun cleaning. He rubbed that cloth up and down the barrel for ever!

We are counting down until the official arrival of Spring which could be in as little as 3 weeks! It begins for us when the sap commences to rise in the trees and sugaring begins.

8 comments
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Robin, sap begins to run when the daytime temps are above freezing and nighttime temps dip below freezing. The sap will run until the trees bud out, though by that time the sap tastes "off". Sugar Maple trees have the highest sugar content, though any Maple will produce syrup. The earlier sap makes the lightest color syrup (favored by most consumers) but the later sap makes darker and more flavorful syrup (favored by many producers including us). You can get approximately 1 quart of finished syrup per tap, though that can vary widely. I hope that helps, ask away!

That must be so trying! I hope the pipes thaw quickly. :) Our house is insulted, but not very well...But our pipes haven't frozen at this house yet... :) They did once when we lived in Missouri... We of course only heat with wood which can make thing pretty hairy sometimes. So I understand. :D

I can't wait for spring either. I keep breaking all the animals water buckets. lol WE did maple syrup with the Howerters once. It was really fun. I wish I could come help y'all. :D

Sarah,The water is back on in most of the house. One of the pipes broke and had to be fixed before it was all said and done. Out landlord doesn't pay for *anything*, so we foot the bill. I must tell you that no one has ever said that Aleks looks like me, the eyes maybe, but he is his Dad through and through. Of course, you've never really seen Gill before either. Oh well, thanks for the compliment! :-)

Thank you for the information!! One of my Christmas presents this year was a maple syrup tapping kit (taps, hydrometer, bags, instruction book, lots of gooies, etc.) I'm really excited. I have read the book but I like having first hand information. Thanks again!